Chartered in 1839 as the capital of the Republic of Texas, Austin
became the state capital when Texas was admitted to the Union in 1846 as
the twenty-eighth state. Austin is now the fourth largest city in the state
and the sixteenth most populous city in the nation.

Located in the Central Texas Hill Country, Austin is approximately 230
miles from Mexico and less than 200 miles from 3 of the 10 largest U.S.
cities (192 miles from Dallas to its north, 79 miles from San Antonio to
its south, and 162 miles from Houston to its southeast).

Nestled in the heart of the Texas Hill Country, the city of Austin
has the rich diversity of a large city and the friendly charm of a small
town. A temperate climate, 28 miles of urban hike-and-bike trails and more
than 11,000 acres of parkland encourage outdoor activities and a relaxed,
casual lifestyle. Austin has political and intellectual stature as the seat
of Texas government and the home of a world class university. During the
last decade, the city's advanced technology research and development sector
has blossomed into a billion-dollar market. Populated in part by UT- Austin
alumni who fell in love with the city's unique beauty and character, Austin
has one of the most highly educated populations in the nation.

The Colorado River forms Lake Austin and Town Lake as it flows
through downtown Austin. Upstream, dams create five large lakes where sailors,
skiers, campers, swimmers, and sunbathers enjoy Austin's temperate climate
from March through October. Not far from downtown Austin, the Barton Springs
swimming pool is formed by a natural spring gushing 27 million gallons of
water a day into a limestone bed. The Hill Country winds south and west from
Austin laced with sparkling rivers and breathtaking vistas, a welcome respite
to weary urbanites --- and exhausted graduate students.

Austin supports both traditional and avant garde theater, dance and opera,
and the Austin Symphony plays a full concert season from September to May.
Austin's legendary live music scene is where many popular rock and roll,
blues, jazz, and country and western singers got their start. Austin is also
home to Austin City Limits and the annual Austin City Limits Music
Festival held at Zilker Park at the end of the summer.

Fortune magazine describes Austin's business climate as one of the nation's
best. Its high technology sector includes more than 400 companies. Many
of these companies, such as Dell Computer Corporation, are nationally
recognized Austin-based businesses.

Mountains, deserts, hills, lakes, beaches, vast high plains, and bustling
cities comprise the landscape of the nation's second largest state. In central
Texas, Austin sits within a 250-mile radius of the Texas Gulf Coast, the
Mexican border and the cities of Dallas, Houston and San Antonio. One of Texas's
most stunning sights is Big Bend National Park in west Texas where 8,000-ft.
mountains rise dramatically from the floor of the Chihuahua Desert. In the
Davis Mountain range, UT-Austin's McDonald Observatory, with one of the world's
largest telescopes, perches on a mountaintop.